A TV documentary featuring Black Country crooks has been described as dreadful by Dudley North MP Ian Austin.

The Channel 4 show Cops and Robbers, which was shown on September 8, featured crooks including Dudley repeat offender Jason Stokes, who describes himself as a one man crime wave.

The depressing documentary prompted the MP to take to Twitter to deliver his verdict on how film makers presented the area.

Mr Austin said: “What a terrible and unrepresentative impression of the town I’m proud to come from Cops and Robbers presented.”

The show, which was the first episode in the series, also highlighted the work of West Midlands Police in tackling repeat offenders.

Superintendent Paul Betts says the force has been successful in cutting crime by rehabilitating offenders, which pays dividends by getting them out of the justice system.

Supt Betts said: “I know there’ll be people who look at what we do with repeat offenders and wonder why we invest so much of our time into working with them, but this approach pays for itself in the long run.

“Every life we change means fewer crimes are being committed − that leads to fewer victims and less demand on police and the courts.”